🧞 Liminal Week 101

What to do with this weird week between the holidays and New Year’s — in 5 minutes.

Author

Flocus
December 28, 2025

In partnership with

Hey there! Welcome back to The Flow by Flocus. If you’re new around here, welcome! 👋  You can catch up on our previous editions right here.

This week: We’re in the middle of the weirdest time of the year: The Liminal Week. AKA, those hazy days between the winter holidays and new year where nobody knows what day it is or what’s for dinner. Let’s talk about it.

🖖 What’s The Liminal Week?

The Liminal Week is that handful of days between the winter holidays and new year.

It kinda feels like the last few days of elementary school before break.

All the work is done, final grades are in, and the class is watching movies during the last few days of school.

Of course, for career professionals and higher education students, the work likely goes on.

Still, because The Liminal Week carries that in-between energy, you’ve probably noticed a shift in vibes at work, home, and beyond.

Maybe things feel lighter, more jovial, and less stressful than usual. Maybe everyone’s tired and just crawling to the finish line. Maybe folks are running behind on those end-of-year deadlines and still cramming. Or maybe there’s a mix of all the above.

Wherever you and your people are at, The Liminal Week is the perfect time to — lightly, slowly, gently — set yourself up for a fulfilling and productive 2026.

But before we share tips on that, let’s explore how liminal spaces in real life affect us every day.

🧞 Let’s Get Liminal

Liminal spaces are everywhere. You likely pass through at least 1 every day.

Think of liminal spaces as being in The In-Between (to remix a term from Stranger Things):

  • 🚸 Liminal spaces aren’t destinations themselves — they tend to connect 2 or more points, or be temporary in nature.

  • 🏨 Examples: airports, hotels, stairwells, hallways, waiting rooms

  • 👬 These “empty” spaces aren’t usually empty at all; they’re often busy.

  • 🔮 Unique, often strange, emotional energies are attached to these spaces. The somber atmosphere of an ER waiting room connects people from all walks of life in a deeper, more meaningful way than most other places.

  • ✋ Certain “rules” apply even to liminal spaces — you wouldn’t be surprised to find a supply closet in a hallway, for example, but you might double-take at a working bathtub.

Knowing all this about liminality, those weird energy shifts over the course of a day or period add up to a decent chunk of mental “debris”.

Which means decluttering and decompressing are the name of the game for this odd time. Let’s talk about how to do it, easy-breezy style.

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Now, here’s what to do during The Liminal Week!

🛫 4 Ways to Make the Most of The Liminal Week

😮‍💨 1. Put absolutely zero pressure on yourself

Whatever you want to do before the year ends, get comfy with wherever you land.

You’ve worked hard all year. Even if you’re “not where you want to be” yet, you’ve grown and achieved a ton. That’s worth acknowledging and celebrating.

So we’re gonna hold your hand as we say this: Chill out. Really. You deserve it.

As you scroll through the following tips, know you don’t have to put any expectations on yourself to “do” anything.

🧖‍♀️ 2. Prioritize joy, comfort, and pleasure

If you’ve read our last couple newsletters, you’ll know we’ve been harping on about resting and transitioning into 2026 with slow, gentle grace.

Whether you’ve been heeding our advice or life’s been too busy to pause, now’s the time to double down on whatever brings you joy.

We’re talking pure indulgence here. If it feels hard, give yourself permission, as many times as you need.

🎁 3. Wrap up your year-in-review

ICYMI: Last week, we shared a sneak peek of our author’s own year-in-review process. This BTS look also included tons of tips and alternatives to the “traditional” review (which can be a bit much).

If you’re doing a year in review — where you reflect on the last 12 months and plan for the next — now’s the time to start finishing it up.

Try and complete it before NYE so you can walk into 2026 with a clear mind and close the door firmly behind you on 2025.

And if you’re not reviewing? All good. Remember, absolutely zero pressure, and always do what works best for you 🩷 Just an idea / reminder in case you need it!

🧼 4. Spruce up your spaces for 2026

As a Flocus user (TYSM for being here 🥹), you clearly value beautiful, personalized workspaces. We love that for us!

So if you haven’t already, freshen up your digital and physical workspaces:

  • 💾 Declutter and organize files on your devices to free up storage space

  • 📭 Clear out your email inbox (pro tip: set up filters and automations for auto-organization)

  • 💻 Switch up your desk, office, digital decor (wallpapers, Flocus dashboards, etc.)

  • 🧽 Deep-clean neglected corners of your room or home

  • 📓 Dump out any thoughts, emotions, and mental energies into a journal to reset your mental energy

🪅 Flocus Picks

A curated list of things worth sharing.

✨ Flocus: Your Personal Productivity Dashboard

Liminal Week is easier to sit with when you have a calm place to land. Flocus gives you a cozy, low pressure space to slow down and keep you company while you wind down the year.

🗳️ POLL: How does the Liminal Week usually feel for you?

Any other thoughts? Let us know in the comments!

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It might be a weird time of year, but that’s exactly what makes it a good time to nourish and restore.

What’d you think of our final send of 2025? What was your favorite edition this year? We always love reading your feedback, so please keep it comin’! 🥰

Until next year (sorry, we had to!),

Flocus Team